The wind blew hard and so did the storm. It had been a day since Wahid had left his home. His memories of hugging his mother and setting his foot on the boat were circling in his mind. He had told his family that he would come back soon.

The storm went on and on and finally when it finished after hours of patience, his boat touched land. He got up and looked around, there were a lot of people standing, every villager peeping out of his home to look at the new visitor.

The mayor of the town, Asim, was a generous man and offered Wahid a room in his house to stay in until Wahid rebuilt his boat. They became good friends as time passed. Asim told Wahid his childhood dream of becoming a sailor, Wahid happily offered to take Asim along on a journey if they got a chance.

But Wahid soon realised that the villagers had been very lazy, they were always down with sorrows and regrets, and they cared no more about making the village a better place to live or striving to improve things. They believed in an “Island of Happiness” and whoever would travel to it would bring hope and blessings to the village.

Wahid was from a progressive city and he couldn’t tolerate the sight of the villagers who were relying on something else to give them a brighter future. Those who had gathered the strength to go in search of the island, got lost or returned midway because of storms. But Wahid, who was interested on everything that had to do with sea, thought about going to that island. So he became determined to go on this journey. Wahid asked for Asim’s help and started planning for this mission.

They told Asim’s wife, Alia, about this plan. She encouraged them and was very excited, thinking that she would gain a lot of respect in society after telling that it was her husband who had gone to the Island of Happiness for them.

One early morning soon, they decided to leave. Alia served them breakfast and filled their lunchboxes with food for their journey. Asim met his three-year-old daughter before he left, who came running to her father.

He bent down and kissed her on the cheek and said, “I will come back soon my dear, do not worry, your father will bring you happiness on the way back home.” His daughter smiled.

As Wahid and Asim began to pile up their stuff in the boat, Asim looked nervous.

“I’m so worried, what if we don’t come back alive?” Asim asked Wahid, who stood with an air of tranquillity.

“Oh don’t worry; there is not much to fret about. I have been a sailor for quite some time. We can find the island,” said Wahid while chuckling.

After many hours of sailing, in which Wahid’s skills steered them out of tight spots, the boat reached a small island with a towering lighthouse in the middle of it. Wahid and Asim thanked God as soon as their feet touched the rocky shore. The island looked dreary and forlorn with thorny bushes as its only vegetation and the sound of ferocious waves hitting the beach.

Soon, Asim spotted a hut nearby and they hurried towards it, seeking shelter from the brutal wind. Upon knocking, an old woman opened the door, quite contrary to their expectations. She invited them both in and served them hot tea. They told her that the people of their village had become lazy and no one was happy, so they had come seeking the Island of Happiness to bring some luck from there to their village.

The woman told them that the island of happiness was a myth. She lived on this island with her husband who was the lighthouse keeper. The old woman gave them a plan to help the village. Asim and Wahid both agreed.

The woman told them that she buys supplies from trading ships that pass from there and asked them to help her make lots of food with those supplies — pastries, bread, roast, rolls and a lot more. Both men thanked her and went back with all the food they had made.

When they reached the island, they told the people that they were going to hold a huge celebration and serve food they had brought from the Island of Happiness. So the people forgot about their problems, because they felt that the solution had arrived, spending the whole day singing, dancing and laughing. When they received the food, they ate it with delight.

They started to feel energised by the food. Everyone started working hard and happily; farmers grew good crops, markets flourished and children studied hard because happiness and hope had been brought into the village through that food. Consequently, the village became prosperous and developed.

Even though the food had nothing special, the people believed it to be and that belief brought them true happiness. The villagers regarded Asim and Wahid with immense respect. They were heroes who saved the village even though it was the hard work of the people that played the major role.

After things in the village improved, Wahid decided to return to his city. When he set sail on his boat, he said to himself, “Hope has returned and so has happiness.”

Published in Dawn, Young World, October 24th, 2020